Martial Dao: Peace by Force

Chapter 330: Chapter 187: Looting the Tomb

Feng Jiuchen’s fingers would occasionally stop at a certain spot. He’d press down, then shake his head and continue feeling his way along the surface.

Wan Ze stood behind him, silent and patient.

This sort of thing couldn’t be rushed. If the entrance to a Tomb were that easy to find, it wouldn’t be worthy of the name.

Feng Jiuchen finally stopped at one spot. He pressed his fingers against it, holding them there for nearly ten seconds before pulling his hand back. He took a step back to examine the area closely, then stepped forward again, placed his palm flat against the rock, and felt it one more time.

Once certain, he nodded and retrieved a sheet of Talisman Paper from his sleeve.

This sheet of Talisman Paper was different from the one he had used on the pavilion. It was larger, a deeper shade, and the Runes on it were far more complex.

The Talisman Paper was a dark gold color, and the Runes on it were written in Cinnabar. The lines were fine and intricate, resembling a miniaturized Array Map.

Feng Jiuchen placed the Talisman Paper against the rock face, muttering something under his breath.

His voice was so low that Wan Ze couldn’t make out the words, hearing only a few muffled syllables that sounded like some sort of ancient Spell.

As Feng Jiuchen’s lips moved rapidly, the rhythm of his breathing changed. His inhalations were short and sharp, his exhalations long and steady.

The moment the Talisman Paper made contact, a faint golden light shimmered across the surface of the rock.

It was as if something within had been awakened.

The golden light formed a series of complex patterns on the rock face. They quickly intertwined to form a massive Seal that covered an area nearly four meters high.

Feng Jiuchen pulled Wan Ze back three to five meters, taking cover behind a protruding boulder. He peeked out, watching the changes on the rock face.

CRACK!

The surface of the mountain cracked. A thin fissure appeared, then spread outward, branching into more and more cracks that crawled across the entire area like a dense web.

Shards of rock fell from the cliff face with a great CRASHING sound, like a shattering mirror.

Once the fragments had all fallen away, a hint of bronze was revealed.

Wan Ze’s breath caught.

He subconsciously took a step forward.

’It looks like a door.’

It was a door cast from bronze, about two meters high, and very peculiar.

The carvings on the door were wrought with coarse, powerful lines. Their exact details were unclear, worn and blurred with age, but he could vaguely make out certain patterns... beasts, birds, swirling clouds, and some markings that were either characters or symbols.

”We’re in! Haha, I knew I’d find it!” Feng Jiuchen’s eyes lit up the moment he saw the door.

He turned to Wan Ze with a grin, his expression a mix of excitement and anticipation.

”I was only forty percent sure before, but now I’m at least ninety percent certain.”

Feng Jiuchen took a deep breath, suppressing his excitement. ”There’s Qi in here,” he said. ”It’s incredibly pure. I can feel it. The quality of this Qi is on a whole other level compared to what we normally use for Cultivation... I think we’re about to strike it rich.”

Wan Ze was thrilled as well.

He tore his gaze away from the bronze door and looked back at Feng Jiuchen. ”What do you need me to do?”

Feng Jiuchen’s smile vanished, his expression turning serious once more. He mulled it over for a moment, mentally running through the next steps one by one before speaking.

”First, I need to determine if this Tomb has ever been opened. I’ll need you to stand guard for me, Brother Wan. If anyone gets close, attack them on sight.”

After he spoke, his eyes lingered on Wan Ze’s face for a moment, as if worried Wan Ze might struggle with this. He patiently added, ”Brother, this world is more twisted than the real one. People are complicated. Don’t you ever hesitate. If you don’t kill them, they will kill you. In Huangliang Village, there’s no such thing as pulling your punches, and ’showing mercy’ isn’t an option. If you show them mercy, they won’t be grateful. They’ll just think you’re weak and an easy target. The moment you turn your back, they’ll stab you, and you won’t even know how you died.”

Wan Ze nodded.

He wasn’t the type to just sit back and wait to die.

He wasn’t like that in the real world, and he certainly wasn’t like that in Huangliang Village.

In the real world, killing someone meant considering the consequences, the law, your family, and the stance of your martial arts school.

But none of that mattered in Huangliang Village. Here, killing was just killing. No reason or explanation required.

Feng Jiuchen turned to face the bronze door and took a deep breath.

He then drew his hands from his sleeves, spreading his fingers with his palms facing outward, as if assuming some kind of preparatory stance.

He intended to move the nearby rocks.

The rubble and dirt piled around the bronze door, some of which had fallen from the cliff face, had buried its lower half.

He couldn’t even touch the door without clearing the stones.

After muttering a few words, Feng Jiuchen took a sheet of Yellow Paper from his sleeve. This one was smaller, thinner, and bore simpler Runes.

He pinched the Yellow Paper between his index and middle fingers, held it up before his eyes, and softly chanted a Spell.

This time, his voice was a little louder, and Wan Ze could make out parts of it. But most of it was still a muddle, like a deliberately encrypted passphrase.

Wan Ze heard the last four words of the Spell with perfect clarity.

”Flying Sand and Stones!”

As those four words left Feng Jiuchen’s lips, a surge of Qi rushed forth. The instant it struck the air, it seemed to ignite, transforming into a visible ripple that expanded in all directions.

The rubble blocking the bronze door began to roll to either side.

It was as if some unseen force was pushing it all aside.

Dirt was swept up, swirling into a gray cloud of dust.